Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure generally relates to method for treating tinnitus. More specifically, the method includes administering a composition to the mammal, wherein the composition consists essentially of a biologically effective amount of vitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin C, a vasodilator comprising magnesium, and, optionally, a withanolide, and/or resveratrol.
Description of the Related Art
Extensive studies have been performed on compositions for treating various types of hearing loss/damage. Tinnitus, typically described as the hearing of a ringing noise, can be perceived in one or both ears and/or in the head. In some cases, tinnitus may be described as high-pitched whining, electric buzzing, hissing, humming, or whistling. Tinnitus can alternatively be described as ticking, clicking, roaring, “crickets” or “tree frogs” or “cicadas.” In some cases, tinnitus may be described as hearing tunes, songs, beeping, sizzling, sounds that resemble human voices, or even as a steady tone that resembles the tone heard during a hearing test. Tinnitus has also been described as a “whooshing” sound because of acute muscle spasms, as of wind or waves. Tinnitus can be intermittent or it can be continuous. In still other instances, the sound may range from a quiet background noise to one that can be heard even over loud external sounds. A specific type of tinnitus, known as pulsatile tinnitus, includes hearing the sounds of one's own pulse or muscle contractions. Some patients with tinnitus have some degree of hearing loss and can be unable to clearly hear external sounds that occur within the same range of frequencies as the tinnitus sounds. This has led to the suggestion that one cause of tinnitus might be a homeostatic response of central dorsal cochlear nucleus auditory neurons that makes them hyperactive in compensation to auditory input loss.
Tinnitus can occur spontaneously and can be identified by default without a known cause. However, tinnitus has been most commonly associated with noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). By some estimates, tinnitus results from NIHL about 80% of the time. High intensity noise is an environmental stress factor for the ear that causes damage which can lead to cell death. High intensity noise can cause damage to micromechanical properties of sensory transducers in the ear, can cause changes in blood flow in the ear, can cause modification in intracellular ion transport properties, can cause depletion of sensory cell transmitter substances (e.g. glutamate), can cause changes in post synaptic membrane transmitter receptors (e.g. gluR) on afferent nerve fibers, can cause modification of dispersion and uptake properties of transmitters in extracellular, synaptic spaces, and/or can cause changes in postsynaptic membrane biophysical properties that may affect space- and time-constant properties modifying depolarization. In addition, high intensity noise can cause changes of an excitotoxic nature in postsynaptic membranes causing destruction of afferent neural tissues. Any one or more of these changes can result in modification of spontaneous activity in individual or small populations of afferent nerve fibers, which can result in the perception of tinnitus. While a number of factors may influence these changes, intercellular redox properties of cells, blood flow to the inner ear, and calcium uptake by postsynaptic afferent nerve fiber membranes may be of particular importance in causing these changes.
Some agents have been tested for efficacy against NIHL and their relative efficacy has been found to differ from their relative efficacy for drug-induced tinnitus. For example, allopurinol tends to be ineffective in reducing gentamicin-induced ototoxicity, but may be effective in reducing noise-induced tinnitus. Accordingly, there remain opportunities to develop effective methods of treating various types and causes of tinnitus. There is also an opportunity to provide a composition for treating tinnitus.